Aftershock II broke the amateur rocket space altitude record (Credit: USC Rocket Propulsion Lab)

A rocket built by students at the University of Southern California (USC) Rocket Propulsion Lab (RPL) has shattered a 20-year record. Aftershock II, launched from Nevada's Black Rock Desert on October 20, 2024, reached an altitude of 470,000 feet (143.3 km). This was 90,000 feet (27.4 km) higher than the previous amateur rocket altitude record of 380,000 feet (115.8 km). It was set by the Civilian Space eXploration Team’s GoFast rocket in 2004.

The 14 feet (4 m) tall Aftershock II broke the sound barrier within two seconds of launch. It reached a maximum speed of 3,600 mph (5,800 km/h) — 5.5 times the speed of sound — just 19 seconds after launch. This slightly exceeded the speed record set by GoFast in 2004.

While its engine burned out shortly after launch, Aftershock II continued its ascent. It left Earth's atmosphere in about 85 seconds after launch and reached its peak altitude in 92 seconds. At this point, the rocket's nose cone detached and deployed its parachute for a safe landing in the desert. Here, it was retrieved by the eagerly waiting student scientists.

The rocket's nose cone deploys its parachute and returns to Earth (Credit: USC Rocket Propulsion Lab)

Aftershock II's success can largely be credited to technological innovations developed by the 100-person team at RPL. The rocket's titanium-coated fins and a new heat-resistant paint enabled it to endure the extreme temperatures generated at high speeds. Student-designed computer systems allowed real-time tracking of the rocket's position and sent back live data throughout the flight.

“This was probably the coolest thing we had ever gotten the opportunity to do,” said Operations Lead Jayna Rybner. "We’re just college students who have homework and dishes and groceries to do, and we just sent a rocket to space. We broke the world record and sent a rocket higher than anyone ever has.”

RPL was founded in 2005 to launch student-designed and built rockets into space. The student-led group first made history in 2019 when their Traveler IV rocket became the first student-built rocket to cross the Kármán line. This imaginary line, 328,083 feet (100 km) above Earth's surface, marks the internationally recognized edge of space.

USC students retrieve the nose cone from the desert (Credit: USC Rocket Propulsion Lab)

RPL's next goal is not to build rockets for higher altitudes, as such launches would require special permissions. Instead, the team plans to focus on developing "sounding" rockets — vehicles designed to carry scientific instruments into space for research purposes.

“Actually, 470,000 feet is just shy of the limit for amateur rocketry, which is 490,000 feet,” said RPL Executive Engineer Ryan Kraemer. “Unless we want to get special clearances, we are going to have to stay under that height, but we are going to move forward in the sense of flying research payloads. We’re excited to use, essentially what is a sounding rocket at this point, to gather data for whoever wants it.”

Resources: Livescience.com, uscannenbergmedia.com, CNN.com